One thing I wouldn't want, which exists today, is a GUI that looks ready to use but has an hourglass or otherwise makes me wait until it is done.
I wouldn't mind that, for two reasons:
First, at least it lets me input further actions. So, while I wait, I can click Firefox, Kopete, a terminal, a text editor, etc. Chances are, by the time I'm done doing that, at least one of them will be open and ready to use.
Second, it removes the useless animation/sound/dance/whatever that happens with a splash screen, which, with a sufficiently fast disk/filesystem, is actually going to be slowing things down, because maybe it would actually be usable in a few seconds. The worst are the ones that automatically stay on screen for a few seconds, even if the program in question is already usable.
If I wasn't unsure of the power usage of my laptop during sleep I'd probably never shutdown. Resume from suspend is really super fast.
Try it. I suppose it depends how well your system is configured, and what kind of hardware you've got, but a Mac in sleep will last days.
I don't sleep so much because I never know if I'm going to be booting it with or without a second monitor, and my own resume from sleep (or hibernation) is actually pretty annoyingly slow.
Yes, Windows Mobile sucks. But, it does one thing Apple doesn't:
You are allowed, and encouraged, to develop and use third-party apps, which have no relationship to Microsoft.
You can download them from the Internet. You can install them via sync, or wifi. I don't actually know you can grab them with wifi, but that doesn't matter, because you could write a program that does that -- write your own package manager, even! -- and no one will stop you.
On the iPhone, you distribute them through Apple, through the App Store, and you buy them through the App Store. Anything else is likely to void your warranty, maybe even get you sued.
Can I buy an unlocked iPhone for a reasonable price, yet? How about deals with networks other than AT&T?
Can I install custom software yet? Oh, I have to jailbreak it. That makes sens... Oh wait, you're asking me to crack my own phone.
Alright, I'll develop an iPhone app. I'll write it in Python, or maybe Erlang, download updates on the fly... Not allowed, you say? I wonder why? Only Apple knows...
Maybe I'll make it run in the background, so I can have something play music while users do something else... Nope, not allowed. When the user taps away from my app, I have to shut down, completely, so as not to drain the battery. That's not just a good best practice, it's actually enforced by Apple.
Yes, it's prettier. Yes, there are things it does better. But as long as Apple keeps such a stranglehold around what's available and what isn't, the iPhone will fall behind. There is no question of that -- there will be killer apps written for Android, even for Windows Mobile, which cannot be ported to the iPhone because of Apple's restrictions.
Why would you want a system so closed, inflexible, and proprietary that it makes Windows look good?
True, I was just demonstrating that a single mouse button is a detriment there, not an advantage.
And it wouldn't be a Mighty Mouse. I'm used to keeping my left finger on the mouse while I click the right button, and the Mighty Mouse interprets that as a left click, even when right-clicks are enabled. Cool concept, cool technology, but I would much rather have two or three physical buttons.
Of course, at this point, both of us are taking it too seriously...
Well, hey, I can get about 30 megabytes per second over scp. I'm sure I could do better, but I don't really care at that point -- the other nice side effect is that I get a nice chunk of bandwidth to use for other, less CPU-intensive things.
I'm OK with religious as long as they can be rational otherwise.
I mean, I still think it's retarded, but at that point, it's a personal preference. I choose to be irrational about some things, too, and that's certainly our right.
What I don't like is when we have people who do talk about it, loudly, in an effort to convince others of their own delusion. I also don't like when religious people are put in power, and make decisions based on their own religious belief, particularly to force that belief onto others, or to fuel their religion with my tax dollars.
But if you're genuinely humble about your religion, that's not my business.
As a simple example: If you believe humans are commanded to not work on the Sabbath day, so you refuse to push a button, use electricity, etc from Friday night till Saturday night, go right ahead. It'll probably do you some good, anyway -- go outside and walk around. Rest, and reflect on your life. Whatever.
Where I have a problem is when you have a state like Israel, which legally enforces that. Or which culturally enforces that -- on Saturday, busses don't run.
Another example: If you believe swear words are wrong, and you'll go to Hell for saying them, fine. I think you'll miss a lot of humor and culture, but that's your problem. I might even respect you enough to avoid using that language when around you.
But if you try to outlaw profanity, thus forcing everyone else to adopt your moronic belief, well, FUCK YOU.
Not everyone is a computer whiz or cares to be one.
And yet, a computer is an essential tool for college. If you're going into college, presumably you're intelligent enough to learn enough -- not to be a "whiz", but at least enough to get the damned thing online. And as computers are that essential for college, you really do need to know at least that much.
Do you know everything about everything? Most people, probably including you, has bought something at a point where they have no interest in learning everything about it and has asked someone for advice.
Well, let's see -- If I lived in a city, I'd need to know how to drive, in order to get around.
For that, I need to know that when I press down on this stick, it does a left turn signal. When I press up, it does a right turn signal. When I twist it forward, the lights turn on; when I twist it back, the lights turn off. When I leave the lights on and the car off, the battery drains, and I won't be able to start it. If I lock the door, with the key inside, I'll be locked out, which sucks.
It takes gas to run. It needs an oil change every few months.
Truly basic stuff, and that's only the beginning. (Seatbelts, adjusting mirrors...) Yet when it comes to computers, no one thinks they should have to know half of what they do about cars, despite software being much more inherently complex than a car.
And yes, asking for advice is good. It looks as though this person asked Dell for advice, and then the local news. The newsperson figured out what anyone should know -- ask Verizon for advice, and ask the school for advice.
Look, if I didn't know how to drive, and I drove a car into a tree, whose fault is that? Mine, for not learning how to use that machine. But if I don't know how to use a computer, and I can't get online, or I get a bunch of malware, obviously, it's the OS's fault for not being secure enough, or easy enough -- or it's the manufacturer's fault for installing the wrong OS -- or it's the ISP's fault for not handholding me, and blocking those evel viruses from getting in -- or it's anybody's fault but mine.
Maybe she really is intelligent but not really familiar with computers.
Given that she's college-bound, it's not an intelligent decision to be computer-illiterate. And if she's intelligent, she should be able to familiarize herself with computers, if it became a priority.
No, the correct solution here is to put a PDF on the CD with instructions, if that saves you money -- otherwise, just distribute a manual.
Getting online should not require a wizard program, and the only reason Verizon provides one is so they can spread branding and crapware on every computer to connect.
The problem is, the only way for this to be any closer to working out of the box is if we either got every single company like Verizon involved, or bundled vmware and XP, which kind of defeats the point.
It's not just that the reaction is stupid -- how else are we supposed to deal with someone who believes they need this Verizon disc to get online? What would you suggest as a way to make Linux easier to get online than it already is (just plug in a network cable)?
There's always a form of Internet connection, usually free, even if you don't own a computer. Public libraries tend to have free computer time, though they may charge for printouts -- reasonable, if you have to take it with you, or bring the laptop into the library (it's a laptop, after all) and use it there.
For that matter, they've probably got wifi, so you bring the laptop in, Google search on one of the library computers to learn how to connect to wifi on Ubuntu (though seriously, that's not hard), then free up the library computer and use your laptop for the other searches.
I'll second this about Dell. They think "The customer is always right" means "Suck up to the customer whenever possible, no matter how shitty the service actually is."
I bought a Dell with Ubuntu, which is great. I've had to call support so many times I've memorized my service tag. On the last call, they finally managed to remember that I have Ubuntu installed. On some other calls, they would claim things like "This laptop only comes with Vista."
So, I'm not surprised she had trouble ordering the right computer, or convincing Dell to exchange it.
The online coursework is completely unaccessible without Internet Explorer. We've tried Safari, Chrome, and of course Firefox to no avail. You have to have IE.
Probably obvious, but did you try switching user agents?
There are ways to get IE working under Wine -- one script that's relatively easy, once you know it exists.
More importantly, this is a place where you need to complain to the course, not to the OS -- or to Microsoft, for that matter, since it'd be far easier for Microsoft to port IE to Unix (they did once before) than it would for Unix. Web standards are not any more difficult than IE only (especially with a framework to help you), and if you have to force a particular browser, it's far less obnoxious to force people to download a 10 meg browser that's available for any OS, than a several gig OS that's not available for all computers.
No, saving as an MS Office document does NOT preserve OOo's document formatting like it should.
Nor do all versions of Word. Better to start with an open format -- supported by recent versions of Word anyway -- or focus on content, not presentation. Or accept PDFs -- most colleges still accept (and often require) printed pages, so I don't see why PDFs are worse.
Calling and whining to the company that runs the online certification program does absolutely nothing,
In my experience, it does actually have an effect in many cases. After all, it's not a great system to begin with -- as I said, it's not hard to build to standards. The fact that they haven't suggests that there are probably other, large problems with the program.
Either way, complaining loudly does mean that if they ever get around to rebuilding it, they'll be aware of that problem.
We can blame the woman in this story for not pulling out the man pages, searching google extensively, working things on command-line, etc...
Man pages are unnecessary for her problem. So is the commandline. Everything can be done from a GUI -- a relatively more intuitive GUI than the Windows way. Perhaps the Verizon disc would've made things easier, perhaps worse, and either way, it would leave crapware that's unnecessary, and I would've avoided it on Windows.
I blame her for not doing the very simplest steps that it would take. Basic questions, like: "OK, I can't use Word, is there anything else like that I can use?" (Even just think that to yourself, then browse through the menus and find "Word Processor".) Then, ask the school, "Do I have to use Microsoft Office, if I can still turn in Office documents?" Then, ask Verizon, "The CD doesn't work. What do I need to know to get online?"
These are the same kind of questions you'd have to ask if you got a Mac. And you'd have to ask similar questions when getting a new computer at all, even a Windows one.
or we can accept that normal, average people should not have to do these things for a mature operating system.
What, ask those questions? I can't accept that.
I can't accept it, because it means the only OS that will ever be considered "mature" is Windows, and only because it is the dominant player. It means that I may as well give up on Linux now, because it will never be "user friendly" enough until it includes a copy of VMWare and Windows, which kind of defeats the purpose.
The only real solution to that kind of lock-in is to start educating people. Whether it was her fault or not, the problem is her ignorance, so the solution is her education.
The equipment was beyond the skill of the user, and thus useless.
Either of those things would have been required with Windows. Just about any computer would be useless in her hands. Five minutes with a competent tech/teacher, and she'd be fine.
And, hey, an hour of training is almost certainly cheaper than multiple hours cleaning out viruses/spyware, or recovering data. That is why security is relevant.
Ideally, call Dell and have support answer. Or call Verizon.
Better, go to your local library. They'll have Internet, and computers to use it on, and printers to use if you have to take the instructions back with you.
Her complaint was that she couldn't run the Verizon disk to set up an Internet connection -- not required, and probably easier without it.
Her other complaint was that she couldn't use Microsoft Office -- apparently, she never found OpenOffice, which comes preinstalled with Ubuntu. She claims it was a requirement, but her school doesn't really care what's used to produce the documents, as long as they work.
So, you're right, it is her fault for not asking the right questions -- but it's also her fault for not exploring her new OS even the slightest bit, and for immediately blaming it for all of her problems.
But there is no reason for a normal person to find some ad-hoc work around to the software not working on an OS they have no special love for.
We're not talking about an "ad-hoc" workaround, we're talking about the normal way to do things. Verizon provides an easier solution in the form of Windows software, but from the comments I'm seeing here, that "easier" solution really isn't.
They aren't going to go looking for random alternatives just because they are out there.
Sorry, but there's a difference between Googling for something to download, and having the tiniest ounce of curiosity required even for a five year old to find Applications -> Office -> Word Processor.
The only reason to ever look for an alternative is when it DOESN'T work.
And in this case Office isn't installed. Rather than enlist a five year old to help her out, she dropped out of college. In fact, from TFA:
Verizon says it will dispatch a technician to try to assist her accessing the internet without using the Windows-only installation disk. MATC also says it promises to accept any of Schubert's papers or class documents using whatever software she has installed.
In the chess/card example, for instance, that's really no different than having a chess master sitting next to you doing the same thing...
In the same sense that an aimbot is really no different than having Fatal1ty sitting next to you, using the mouse?
But that would be all on the server-to-client direction, no? The server sends the map layout, current x,y,z and facing, and let the client render it. The client sends user input (w,a,s,d,fire, grenade, duck,etc..) to the server, which can trivially validate it ("Hey, I just received 2^n requests to move straight ahead in 1/100th of the time I should have.") I beleive WoW implemented something like this back in the 1.4-ish days to counter a speedhack.
All of which does nothing to counter wallhacks or aimbots, unless you're talking about sending all the polygon data back periodically, which would be impractical.
No, what you're actually doing is sending game state back and forth. And yes, you can prevent people from teleporting around, or otherwise bending the physics of the game. But you can't prevent people from significantly enhancing themselves in other ways, like aimbots.
I do think, though, that it's not as ineffective as you make it sound, and I think the best method is what you mentioned: ban-hammer.
That assumes you know who's cheating, and that's difficult. The old admin_mod for hlds/counterstrike would simply flag people who were "too" accurate -- but humans can, in fact, be close to that accurate, and aimbots could deliberately add a degree of error, forcing the detection to be fuzzier. Admins will often ban people for doing things like shooting through a door, or a box -- but people do that, even if they can't see the target. So a lucky shot could mean a ban.
In practice, what it means is that people are simply banned for being "too good", not for any actual cheating.
The actual ban-hammer that, say, Valve wields over every game you've ever bought through Steam, is something which (I believe) is triggered by the "anti-cheating" stuff embedded in the client. It would kind of suck if you could lose access to all your legitimately purchased games by simply being too good.
censorship is the accepted norm for "solving" disagreements about what we see, say and hear
Censorship in America is largely self-imposed, by industries, not something handed down from the government.
why should you expect it to get any better?
Because this particular attempt is so much of a violation of the first amendment, it's laughable. It would go to the Supreme Court, and that law would be overturned, very likely with plenty of bad press all around.
One problem is POST, because so many things have to be checked for, including legacy hardware. Apple doesn't have to care -- they supply the hardware, they can change how it works. They could even use the OS X kernel as the firmware, or have the firmware know nothing other than Firewire target mode and the internal hard disk.
Once you've got that kernel, the rest is partly about the memory, yes -- but with solid state, maybe it won't be as fast as RAM, but it will be fast enough that you could have a usable system immediately.
So, it's really more about software design. It's about, give me a login screen RIGHT NOW, and bring everything not related to that login screen up in the background -- or better, as-needed. My current Ubuntu does that in the wrong order -- there's tons of shit, like CUPS, which is started before the display manager. I rarely ever print -- CUPS should be started on demand, not on boot.
After logging in, it's the same story -- giving you a panel and a launcher should take priority. Instead, every OS I've used either throws up a splash screen or spends several seconds loading random crap before I get those things, and then maybe 30 seconds afterward loading everything else.
My current OS could take me to a usable desktop in 20, maybe 25 seconds. It gets better as the hardware gets faster. But the stuff packed into my initramfs says that the system is plenty usable for certain things long before I get that login prompt. The fact that once all of that is ready, Konqueror takes less than a second, and Firefox takes less than five, suggests that at least I could have a browser while I wait for everything else.
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Maybe each classroom already has a computer or ten, but no TV. Why not deal with the Internet?
You shouldn't even need more bandwidth, if your local network is configured properly.
One thing I wouldn't want, which exists today, is a GUI that looks ready to use but has an hourglass or otherwise makes me wait until it is done.
I wouldn't mind that, for two reasons:
First, at least it lets me input further actions. So, while I wait, I can click Firefox, Kopete, a terminal, a text editor, etc. Chances are, by the time I'm done doing that, at least one of them will be open and ready to use.
Second, it removes the useless animation/sound/dance/whatever that happens with a splash screen, which, with a sufficiently fast disk/filesystem, is actually going to be slowing things down, because maybe it would actually be usable in a few seconds. The worst are the ones that automatically stay on screen for a few seconds, even if the program in question is already usable.
If I wasn't unsure of the power usage of my laptop during sleep I'd probably never shutdown. Resume from suspend is really super fast.
Try it. I suppose it depends how well your system is configured, and what kind of hardware you've got, but a Mac in sleep will last days.
I don't sleep so much because I never know if I'm going to be booting it with or without a second monitor, and my own resume from sleep (or hibernation) is actually pretty annoyingly slow.
Except it's true.
Yes, Windows Mobile sucks. But, it does one thing Apple doesn't:
You are allowed, and encouraged, to develop and use third-party apps, which have no relationship to Microsoft.
You can download them from the Internet. You can install them via sync, or wifi. I don't actually know you can grab them with wifi, but that doesn't matter, because you could write a program that does that -- write your own package manager, even! -- and no one will stop you.
On the iPhone, you distribute them through Apple, through the App Store, and you buy them through the App Store. Anything else is likely to void your warranty, maybe even get you sued.
Yeah...
Can I buy an unlocked iPhone for a reasonable price, yet? How about deals with networks other than AT&T?
Can I install custom software yet? Oh, I have to jailbreak it. That makes sens... Oh wait, you're asking me to crack my own phone.
Alright, I'll develop an iPhone app. I'll write it in Python, or maybe Erlang, download updates on the fly... Not allowed, you say? I wonder why? Only Apple knows...
Maybe I'll make it run in the background, so I can have something play music while users do something else... Nope, not allowed. When the user taps away from my app, I have to shut down, completely, so as not to drain the battery. That's not just a good best practice, it's actually enforced by Apple.
Yes, it's prettier. Yes, there are things it does better. But as long as Apple keeps such a stranglehold around what's available and what isn't, the iPhone will fall behind. There is no question of that -- there will be killer apps written for Android, even for Windows Mobile, which cannot be ported to the iPhone because of Apple's restrictions.
Why would you want a system so closed, inflexible, and proprietary that it makes Windows look good?
It would be very easy for them to come up with some bullshit argument that profanity isn't protected speech.
Let's hear it, then.
True, I was just demonstrating that a single mouse button is a detriment there, not an advantage.
And it wouldn't be a Mighty Mouse. I'm used to keeping my left finger on the mouse while I click the right button, and the Mighty Mouse interprets that as a left click, even when right-clicks are enabled. Cool concept, cool technology, but I would much rather have two or three physical buttons.
Of course, at this point, both of us are taking it too seriously...
Well, hey, I can get about 30 megabytes per second over scp. I'm sure I could do better, but I don't really care at that point -- the other nice side effect is that I get a nice chunk of bandwidth to use for other, less CPU-intensive things.
Except that to right-click on OS X, you need ctrl+mousebutton, which means you need two hands instead of one.
You're thinking twice about recommending a product called OpenOffice.Org to people?
Wait, WTF?
How in the fuck can someone end up at the wrong URL to download a product which is named after its own URL?!
I'm OK with religious as long as they can be rational otherwise.
I mean, I still think it's retarded, but at that point, it's a personal preference. I choose to be irrational about some things, too, and that's certainly our right.
What I don't like is when we have people who do talk about it, loudly, in an effort to convince others of their own delusion. I also don't like when religious people are put in power, and make decisions based on their own religious belief, particularly to force that belief onto others, or to fuel their religion with my tax dollars.
But if you're genuinely humble about your religion, that's not my business.
As a simple example: If you believe humans are commanded to not work on the Sabbath day, so you refuse to push a button, use electricity, etc from Friday night till Saturday night, go right ahead. It'll probably do you some good, anyway -- go outside and walk around. Rest, and reflect on your life. Whatever.
Where I have a problem is when you have a state like Israel, which legally enforces that. Or which culturally enforces that -- on Saturday, busses don't run.
Another example: If you believe swear words are wrong, and you'll go to Hell for saying them, fine. I think you'll miss a lot of humor and culture, but that's your problem. I might even respect you enough to avoid using that language when around you.
But if you try to outlaw profanity, thus forcing everyone else to adopt your moronic belief, well, FUCK YOU.
Not everyone is a computer whiz or cares to be one.
And yet, a computer is an essential tool for college. If you're going into college, presumably you're intelligent enough to learn enough -- not to be a "whiz", but at least enough to get the damned thing online. And as computers are that essential for college, you really do need to know at least that much.
Do you know everything about everything? Most people, probably including you, has bought something at a point where they have no interest in learning everything about it and has asked someone for advice.
Well, let's see -- If I lived in a city, I'd need to know how to drive, in order to get around.
For that, I need to know that when I press down on this stick, it does a left turn signal. When I press up, it does a right turn signal. When I twist it forward, the lights turn on; when I twist it back, the lights turn off. When I leave the lights on and the car off, the battery drains, and I won't be able to start it. If I lock the door, with the key inside, I'll be locked out, which sucks.
It takes gas to run. It needs an oil change every few months.
Truly basic stuff, and that's only the beginning. (Seatbelts, adjusting mirrors...) Yet when it comes to computers, no one thinks they should have to know half of what they do about cars, despite software being much more inherently complex than a car.
And yes, asking for advice is good. It looks as though this person asked Dell for advice, and then the local news. The newsperson figured out what anyone should know -- ask Verizon for advice, and ask the school for advice.
Look, if I didn't know how to drive, and I drove a car into a tree, whose fault is that? Mine, for not learning how to use that machine. But if I don't know how to use a computer, and I can't get online, or I get a bunch of malware, obviously, it's the OS's fault for not being secure enough, or easy enough -- or it's the manufacturer's fault for installing the wrong OS -- or it's the ISP's fault for not handholding me, and blocking those evel viruses from getting in -- or it's anybody's fault but mine.
Maybe she really is intelligent but not really familiar with computers.
Given that she's college-bound, it's not an intelligent decision to be computer-illiterate. And if she's intelligent, she should be able to familiarize herself with computers, if it became a priority.
No, the correct solution here is to put a PDF on the CD with instructions, if that saves you money -- otherwise, just distribute a manual.
Getting online should not require a wizard program, and the only reason Verizon provides one is so they can spread branding and crapware on every computer to connect.
It works out of the box.
The problem is, the only way for this to be any closer to working out of the box is if we either got every single company like Verizon involved, or bundled vmware and XP, which kind of defeats the point.
It's not just that the reaction is stupid -- how else are we supposed to deal with someone who believes they need this Verizon disc to get online? What would you suggest as a way to make Linux easier to get online than it already is (just plug in a network cable)?
Two words: Public library.
There's always a form of Internet connection, usually free, even if you don't own a computer. Public libraries tend to have free computer time, though they may charge for printouts -- reasonable, if you have to take it with you, or bring the laptop into the library (it's a laptop, after all) and use it there.
For that matter, they've probably got wifi, so you bring the laptop in, Google search on one of the library computers to learn how to connect to wifi on Ubuntu (though seriously, that's not hard), then free up the library computer and use your laptop for the other searches.
I'll second this about Dell. They think "The customer is always right" means "Suck up to the customer whenever possible, no matter how shitty the service actually is."
I bought a Dell with Ubuntu, which is great. I've had to call support so many times I've memorized my service tag. On the last call, they finally managed to remember that I have Ubuntu installed. On some other calls, they would claim things like "This laptop only comes with Vista."
So, I'm not surprised she had trouble ordering the right computer, or convincing Dell to exchange it.
The online coursework is completely unaccessible without Internet Explorer. We've tried Safari, Chrome, and of course Firefox to no avail. You have to have IE.
Probably obvious, but did you try switching user agents?
There are ways to get IE working under Wine -- one script that's relatively easy, once you know it exists.
More importantly, this is a place where you need to complain to the course, not to the OS -- or to Microsoft, for that matter, since it'd be far easier for Microsoft to port IE to Unix (they did once before) than it would for Unix. Web standards are not any more difficult than IE only (especially with a framework to help you), and if you have to force a particular browser, it's far less obnoxious to force people to download a 10 meg browser that's available for any OS, than a several gig OS that's not available for all computers.
No, saving as an MS Office document does NOT preserve OOo's document formatting like it should.
Nor do all versions of Word. Better to start with an open format -- supported by recent versions of Word anyway -- or focus on content, not presentation. Or accept PDFs -- most colleges still accept (and often require) printed pages, so I don't see why PDFs are worse.
Calling and whining to the company that runs the online certification program does absolutely nothing,
In my experience, it does actually have an effect in many cases. After all, it's not a great system to begin with -- as I said, it's not hard to build to standards. The fact that they haven't suggests that there are probably other, large problems with the program.
Either way, complaining loudly does mean that if they ever get around to rebuilding it, they'll be aware of that problem.
We can blame the woman in this story for not pulling out the man pages, searching google extensively, working things on command-line, etc...
Man pages are unnecessary for her problem. So is the commandline. Everything can be done from a GUI -- a relatively more intuitive GUI than the Windows way. Perhaps the Verizon disc would've made things easier, perhaps worse, and either way, it would leave crapware that's unnecessary, and I would've avoided it on Windows.
I blame her for not doing the very simplest steps that it would take. Basic questions, like: "OK, I can't use Word, is there anything else like that I can use?" (Even just think that to yourself, then browse through the menus and find "Word Processor".) Then, ask the school, "Do I have to use Microsoft Office, if I can still turn in Office documents?" Then, ask Verizon, "The CD doesn't work. What do I need to know to get online?"
These are the same kind of questions you'd have to ask if you got a Mac. And you'd have to ask similar questions when getting a new computer at all, even a Windows one.
or we can accept that normal, average people should not have to do these things for a mature operating system.
What, ask those questions? I can't accept that.
I can't accept it, because it means the only OS that will ever be considered "mature" is Windows, and only because it is the dominant player. It means that I may as well give up on Linux now, because it will never be "user friendly" enough until it includes a copy of VMWare and Windows, which kind of defeats the purpose.
The only real solution to that kind of lock-in is to start educating people. Whether it was her fault or not, the problem is her ignorance, so the solution is her education.
The equipment was beyond the skill of the user, and thus useless.
Either of those things would have been required with Windows. Just about any computer would be useless in her hands. Five minutes with a competent tech/teacher, and she'd be fine.
And, hey, an hour of training is almost certainly cheaper than multiple hours cleaning out viruses/spyware, or recovering data. That is why security is relevant.
Ideally, call Dell and have support answer. Or call Verizon.
Better, go to your local library. They'll have Internet, and computers to use it on, and printers to use if you have to take the instructions back with you.
Neither was required.
Her complaint was that she couldn't run the Verizon disk to set up an Internet connection -- not required, and probably easier without it.
Her other complaint was that she couldn't use Microsoft Office -- apparently, she never found OpenOffice, which comes preinstalled with Ubuntu. She claims it was a requirement, but her school doesn't really care what's used to produce the documents, as long as they work.
So, you're right, it is her fault for not asking the right questions -- but it's also her fault for not exploring her new OS even the slightest bit, and for immediately blaming it for all of her problems.
But there is no reason for a normal person to find some ad-hoc work around to the software not working on an OS they have no special love for.
We're not talking about an "ad-hoc" workaround, we're talking about the normal way to do things. Verizon provides an easier solution in the form of Windows software, but from the comments I'm seeing here, that "easier" solution really isn't.
They aren't going to go looking for random alternatives just because they are out there.
Sorry, but there's a difference between Googling for something to download, and having the tiniest ounce of curiosity required even for a five year old to find Applications -> Office -> Word Processor.
The only reason to ever look for an alternative is when it DOESN'T work.
And in this case Office isn't installed. Rather than enlist a five year old to help her out, she dropped out of college. In fact, from TFA:
Verizon says it will dispatch a technician to try to assist her accessing the internet without using the Windows-only installation disk.
MATC also says it promises to accept any of Schubert's papers or class documents using whatever software she has installed.
In the chess/card example, for instance, that's really no different than having a chess master sitting next to you doing the same thing...
In the same sense that an aimbot is really no different than having Fatal1ty sitting next to you, using the mouse?
But that would be all on the server-to-client direction, no? The server sends the map layout, current x,y,z and facing, and let the client render it. The client sends user input (w,a,s,d,fire, grenade, duck,etc..) to the server, which can trivially validate it ("Hey, I just received 2^n requests to move straight ahead in 1/100th of the time I should have.") I beleive WoW implemented something like this back in the 1.4-ish days to counter a speedhack.
All of which does nothing to counter wallhacks or aimbots, unless you're talking about sending all the polygon data back periodically, which would be impractical.
No, what you're actually doing is sending game state back and forth. And yes, you can prevent people from teleporting around, or otherwise bending the physics of the game. But you can't prevent people from significantly enhancing themselves in other ways, like aimbots.
I do think, though, that it's not as ineffective as you make it sound, and I think the best method is what you mentioned: ban-hammer.
That assumes you know who's cheating, and that's difficult. The old admin_mod for hlds/counterstrike would simply flag people who were "too" accurate -- but humans can, in fact, be close to that accurate, and aimbots could deliberately add a degree of error, forcing the detection to be fuzzier. Admins will often ban people for doing things like shooting through a door, or a box -- but people do that, even if they can't see the target. So a lucky shot could mean a ban.
In practice, what it means is that people are simply banned for being "too good", not for any actual cheating.
The actual ban-hammer that, say, Valve wields over every game you've ever bought through Steam, is something which (I believe) is triggered by the "anti-cheating" stuff embedded in the client. It would kind of suck if you could lose access to all your legitimately purchased games by simply being too good.
censorship is the accepted norm for "solving" disagreements about what we see, say and hear
Censorship in America is largely self-imposed, by industries, not something handed down from the government.
why should you expect it to get any better?
Because this particular attempt is so much of a violation of the first amendment, it's laughable. It would go to the Supreme Court, and that law would be overturned, very likely with plenty of bad press all around.
Well, let's see:
One problem is POST, because so many things have to be checked for, including legacy hardware. Apple doesn't have to care -- they supply the hardware, they can change how it works. They could even use the OS X kernel as the firmware, or have the firmware know nothing other than Firewire target mode and the internal hard disk.
Once you've got that kernel, the rest is partly about the memory, yes -- but with solid state, maybe it won't be as fast as RAM, but it will be fast enough that you could have a usable system immediately.
So, it's really more about software design. It's about, give me a login screen RIGHT NOW, and bring everything not related to that login screen up in the background -- or better, as-needed. My current Ubuntu does that in the wrong order -- there's tons of shit, like CUPS, which is started before the display manager. I rarely ever print -- CUPS should be started on demand, not on boot.
After logging in, it's the same story -- giving you a panel and a launcher should take priority. Instead, every OS I've used either throws up a splash screen or spends several seconds loading random crap before I get those things, and then maybe 30 seconds afterward loading everything else.
My current OS could take me to a usable desktop in 20, maybe 25 seconds. It gets better as the hardware gets faster. But the stuff packed into my initramfs says that the system is plenty usable for certain things long before I get that login prompt. The fact that once all of that is ready, Konqueror takes less than a second, and Firefox takes less than five, suggests that at least I could have a browser while I wait for everything else.